The Deal
by Lady Lestat
Summary: Dean's deadline is rapidly approaching and Sam's feeling desperate - can Ruby help defeat Lilith by tutoring the youngest Winchester in the use of his increasing powers?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Supernatural belongs to Eric Kripke, I'm just borrowing :)

AN: Yes, this is another story about Dean's deal, but after viewing the finale of season 3 I just had to have a fiddle with it. I hope everyone enjoys what I've written so far and lets me know what they think! :D

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Sam glanced furtively behind him at Dean still lying fast asleep on the latest scummy motel bed they had rented for the night. He adjusted the strap of the holdall currently pinching at his shoulder and reached out to slowly turn the door knob, hoping to make as little sound as possible. Sam knew it was a cruel thing to do, sneaking off in the middle of the night, but he reminded himself that it was in his brother's best interests.

Dean shifted restlessly amongst the blankets as though he could sense Sam's underhanded plan, but he didn't wake. Sam released a breath he hadn't even known he was holding and left the room pausing only to shove a note through the gap under the door. He knew that Dean would probably ignore his request and come after him anyway, but at least this way his brother would know that he'd left of his own volition.

The fact of the matter was Sam knew his powers were increasing; after all, he'd nearly destroyed his laptop the other day when he'd accidentally summoned a lick of fire in the palm of his hand. He didn't want to hurt Dean, whether intentionally or not, and there was always the possibility that if he managed to get these powers under control he might be able to do something about that horrendous deal. Sam hated the fact that Dean had bartered away his soul to bring him back to life. Hadn't Dean always said that what was dead should stay dead? So why didn't that seem to include him? Of course, he was grateful to his brother, but not at such a huge cost. It seemed like Dean had forgotten completely about the pain he went through knowing their father had done the same thing for him.

Reaching into his pockets, Sam drew out the wire coat hanger he'd stolen from the closet of the motel room and deftly unbent it. He wasn't foolish enough to steal the Impala; heaven knew he'd be in enough trouble for leaving if, or rather _when_, Dean caught up with him. Instead, Sam crossed to a battered looking old Toyota pickup truck and inserted the wire down the side of the driver's window. A few careful moves later and Sam was inside the vehicle sparking wires against each other to jumpstart the engine. He was greatly relieved when the truck eventually sputtered into life and he quickly floored the gas pedal and steered towards the exit onto the highway. A glance in the rear-view mirror gave him a clenched feeling in his gut as he saw Dean rushing out into the car park behind him, half dressed and panicked. Sam felt guilty, but steeled his resolve; Dean couldn't catch up to him immediately anyway as, despite not taking the Impala, he _had_ hidden the keys.

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Dean wasn't sure what had woken him at first but, as he blinked blearily into the dark, he knew that something wasn't right. Instinctively he turned to Sam's bed and instantly knew what had felt wrong enough to wake him from his usual deep sleep. Sam's bed was missing one vital ingredient; Sam wasn't there. At first Dean reasoned that he was probably in the bathroom, lord knows the boy had seemed borderline obsessive with hygiene when they were growing up in a combination of various motels and dilapidated houses. Unfortunately the older Winchester couldn't hear any water sputtering out of the dodgy faucets. That and he had just spotted a rather suspicious looking piece of paper resting on the battered old doormat.

It only took him a couple of seconds to scan the few sentences the note contained, before Dean was haring out of the room and racing towards the carpark. It was with a sick feeling in his stomach that he watched the red Toyota pickup peel out of its space and accelerate off in a cloud of dust. Dashing back to their room, the blond man cursed violently as he realized the keys to the Impala weren't where he'd left them. He'd never catch Sam now.

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Sam sighed uncomfortably as he wriggled about in his seat, unable to find a position that eased the ache in his back. He'd tried distracting himself with the radio, but it had felt wrong having music on while he was driving when Dean wasn't around to complain at his choice of station. Sam wrestled the window down instead to try and get some cool air blowing around to wake him up a bit. There was only ten or so more kilometres until he reached the exit he wanted.

The trees all seemed to blur into one in the dark and he almost missed the sign when it finally appeared due to their overgrown state at the side of the road. Sam still couldn't believe he was actually doing this, but he was sick of the awful feelings that constantly plagued him whenever he thought about Dean's deal. The most predominant of these feelings was guilt, and if he had to give in to Ruby to fix the problem, then that was a risk he was prepared to take. The youngest Winchester knew that Dean couldn't stand Ruby and had on more than one occasion made this opinion clear verbally and physically; hence his decision to run away. Dean's deal was up in roughly two weeks and Sam was now utterly desperate having found no other alternative to rescue his brother.

Sam pulled up next to the wood cabin and got out from behind the wheel of the truck, unfolding his cramped legs with a groan of relief. The cabin was only a matter of a few hundred yards from where Dean had originally made the deal in Cold Oak, which Sam supposed Ruby felt was amusingly ironic. Sam looked around the area with a grim expression and decided that instead of getting despondent at the sight of the place, he should let it spur him on. It was also handy as he doubted that this would be a place that Dean would be likely to search for him immediately.

Sam grabbed his holdall from the passenger seat of the truck, slammed the door and crunched noisily across the gravel pathway to the veranda of the cabin. He figured there was no point in being subtle about it since Ruby probably knew he had arrived anyway; she had an annoying habit of always seeming to know exactly where he was. He was proved right when the front door swung open just as he reached the foot of the steps and she was standing there with her usual smirk.

"Well Sam, aren't you going to come in?"


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer - Supernatural Eric Kripke :(

AN - I don't normally plan on updating every few days, it will probably be every week or so depending on how busy I am. But since I had a couple of free days this week I decided to write the second chapter early. Hopefully people enjoy it and leave a review as it was really nice to see the reviews of the previous chapter - thanks for those btw - much appreciated!

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Dean had moved past anger; he had gotten all his rage out by trashing the motel room in his rush to find his car keys

Dean had moved past anger; he had gotten all his rage out by trashing the motel room in his rush to find his car keys. It was only now that he'd found them, tucked snugly away amongst the coffee sachets, that he'd slowed down and started to feel worried and a little scared instead. It didn't help that he had no idea where Sam had gone, and that the time he'd wasted finding the keys had given his brother a lot of time to put a fair distance between them.

Sitting on the floor surrounded by overturned furniture, clothing and other debris, Dean tried to remain calm and think rationally over what to do next. It didn't take a genius to figure out why Sam had left, he could surmise as much from the note; his little brother had gone off on a stupidly dangerous mission to try and save him from going to Hell and he didn't want Dean around when it all blew up in his face. Which it would; he _knew_ it. Maybe he should call Bobby, he'd know what to do, the older hunter always seemed to have some kind of trick up his sleeve.

Dean rummaged around in the mess for a couple of minutes before locating his phone from where he'd knocked it off the nightstand. Frowning at the screen for a second, the young hunter stabbed at the 'on' button several times before realizing in fury that his light-fingered little _toad_ of a brother had lifted the battery.

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Sam followed the blonde haired demon through the front door and into the main living area, where he dumped his bag on an old, yet still surprisingly comfy-looking sofa. He hadn't brought much with him; just a couple of changes of clothes, a dog-eared family picture, laptop and the few weapons from the trunk of the Impala that belonged solely to him. He hadn't thought to bring any food supplies and now he was regretting it as his stomach gently rumbled, causing him to flush and glare at Ruby as she grinned.

"There's some microwave meals in the freezer, demon spawn."

Sam frowned at her in annoyance, "Don't call me that."

"Well, you may as well be, Sammy - Sam Winchester; Demonic Spawn extraordinaire!"

"My mother and father were two perfectly ordinary, _happy_, people with two perfectly ordinary _happy_ kids before Yellow Eyes showed up. Don't you dare make light of this situation!"

As Sam grew more angry at Ruby's flippant remarks, he failed to notice the rising glow in the palm of his hand until it was too late; the curtains framing the wooded view were already smouldering.

Ruby raised one perfectly groomed eyebrow, "Looks like you came to me just in time."

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Dean's face had a stern set to it as he clambered into the Impala and roared off down the highway, Metallica cranked up to full blast on the stereo. Unfortunately not even 'don't tread on me' could raise his mood, which was currently set firmly in pissed off mode. The eldest Winchester had decided to just drive to Bobby's salvage yard anyway, gambling on the likely probability that the man would be home. The man was like a father to the brothers, and if anyone was going to be able to help, it would be Bobby.

South Dakota was still around two-hundred kilometres away, and Dean was determined to reach his destination without flipping out at the fact that his sibling had ditched him. His hands tightened their grip on the steering wheel so that his knuckles strained and he clenched his teeth. Everything would have to wait till he got to Bobby. He couldn't even trace Sam through his cell phone as he had no access to a pay phone or computer. Even if he did have the facilities to contact the company, they'd both changed their numbers recently and Sam's number was only to be found in the phonebook of his own inanimate cell.

Dean didn't bother to stop for a rest, pausing only when the situation demanded at gas stations to refuel the car and grab a quick snack he could eat whilst driving; there was no time for toilet breaks, Dean simply reused his bottle of Pepsi Max. It was disgusting, but the blond man wasn't really caring much for propriety at that juncture. He was literally going to kill Sam when he found him, and then bring him back _again_.

The Impala growled as Dean mashed his foot on the gas pedal even further towards the floor.

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Luckily there were plenty of fire extinguishers at hand to douse the flames licking at the window pane, as Ruby seemed to have anticipated a few teething problems with Sam's powers. Flinging open the slightly blackened window to let the smoky smell out, Ruby then went to perch on the arm of the sofa Sam was currently occupying. The youngest Winchester was staring at his hands, absently tracing the skin as if searching for scorch marks that were nowhere to be found. Ruby covered his hands with hers and pushed them out of his line of sight so that he looked up at her in surprise.

"Look, Sam, if we're going to sort out the mess your powers are in so as to defeat that bitch Lilith in time, you can't start moping like a baby every time something goes wrong."

Sam gave her a heated glare that subsided somewhat as he saw that she was being sincere. He sighed.

"I know that, but I can't afford to make any more mistakes, it's too close to Dean's deadline. I get what you're saying though; there's no time to waste on emotional breakdowns."

The blonde demon's face softened as she witnessed the sincerity in Sam's eyes. Ruby wasn't completely heartless; in fact, when she was still alive she'd been a very caring person, but Hell tends to harden you no matter how saintly you might be. Only Sam could make her feel vaguely human again and she wasn't sure if she should thank him or curse him for it.

"You love your brother, I know, and you're scared of the changes happening to you," Ruby ventured as Sam's gaze dropped to the floorboards. "But you can't let your feelings get the best of you, Sam. You should use them to your advantage; let them make you more determined, more focussed. Lilith has no such human leanings and this could very well be the thing that tips the balance in our favour; people are willing to do crazy things for the ones they love."

Sam looked up sharply at her in surprise and she gave him a quick smirk.

"Now go and grab some food and then get to bed – we start your training early in the morning and I refuse to have you bitching about needing your beauty sleep."

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	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer - Sadly the boys still belong to his majesty Sir Kripke.

AN - This chapter may be a teeny bit shorter than the previous two, but that's because there is a fair amount of action in this installment and, despite giving myself a week to update this fic and having the distraction of friends over to visit for a couple of days, I couldn't resist posting now as I felt I was at a good place to stop. Hopefully people will enjoy it and thereby be a bit more inclined to leave a comment.

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The Impala skidded to a halt on the dirt track leading up to the front gates that marked the entrance to the Singer Salvage Yard

The Impala skidded to a halt on the dirt track leading up to the front gates that marked the entrance to the Singer Salvage Yard. Dean paused for a second to take a deep breath and uncurl his hands from their rigid position around the steering wheel, before swinging open the car door. Grabbing his rucksack from the trunk after stuffing a few odds and ends into it, he began marching up the path between the various wrecks of vehicles to Bobby's house. Halfway there he was accosted by Rumsfeld, Bobby's large slobbering doggy friend, who seemed to have taken it upon himself to bark enthusiastically and slobber all over Dean's jeans. Not quite managing a smile at the pet's excitement, Dean looked up as the senior hunter came striding out to meet him, having evidently heard the barks.

"Down boy!" Bobby called firmly, as he took in the haggard expression on Dean's face. "I think you'd better come in, son. I'm figurin' somethin's gone south if Sam ain't with ya."

"Thanks Bobby," Dean muttered.

When they were both seated on Bobby's threadbare furniture in the den, Rumsfeld flopped over his master's boots, the elder hunter decided to let Dean speak of his own accord. There was no use pressing him; no son of John Winchester could ever be coerced into revealing their personal feelings in his experience. Dean took a quick gulp of his now luke-warm coffee before focussing in on telling the story. By the time he'd finished, Bobby was looking rather more worried than he had originally.

"Blast it Dean, why didn't you call me as soon as it happened?"

Dean scowled in response. "I tried to but Sammy seemed to think it was a prize idea to take my cell phone battery for a joyride."

Bobby sighed in annoyance before getting down to the business of trying to work out how to dig the Winchesters out of their new additional self-imposed mess. It was probably best to work through each detail of the situation in order to create a viable solution.

"Well unless Sam doubled back on himself, the number of places he's likely to be can be narrowed down a little by which road he took away from the motel. We can take a look at a map and see if there's any places that jump out at us in the direction he took. Now, when you were still together, did he mention any kind of plans to you about fixing the deal?"

"No not really," replied Dean, inexplicably feeling a little more at ease now that Bobby was on the case. "I mean, I know that demon bitch Ruby was stringing him along by claiming she had a way out for me, but he knows she can't be trusted. He wouldn't go to her, he knows how I feel about her for starters."

"Are you so sure about that Dean?" Bobby said, looking sceptical, "After all, you've got a little under two weeks left? Sam's gotta be feelin' pretty desperate by now."

"Don't say it Bobby! Voodoo, Hoodoo, Pagan ritual, black magic, even fucking _zombie_ breeding I could get to grips with. But Ruby? No, _no_ way. He's not that stupid!"

Bobby raised an eyebrow.

"Shit."

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Sam groaned as he grabbed at the wall to pull himself up again, moving like an old man against the pain that stabbed its way through his back. Ruby saw the grimace on his bruised face and sighed impatiently.

"Sam, you can't keep holding back when I attack you; that's the fifth time I've thrown you into that wall today and it's getting ridiculous!"

Sam growled at her in annoyance. "You think I'm voluntarily letting you beat the crap out of me? I don't have any weapons! How am I supposed to win when you're so much stronger than me?"

"You don't need weapons, and if you think you can beat Lilith off with a measly little pig sticker like the knife in your bag you want so badly; I would say that you pretty much deserve to die."

Sam was beginning to feel seriously pissed at her now; so far they had gotten nowhere since lunchtime other than making a mess of several furnishings and Sam's body.

"Well that's exactly what I'm gonna be doing if you keep wasting my time on this pointless rubbish Ruby! Lets just face facts; I can't control my powers and it would be foolish to rely on them to get this job done!"

"You know what? I honestly don't know why I'm bothering with you Sam; I'm not seeing any evidence for the high esteem Yellow Eyes seemed to hold you in, you're pathetic! I guess dear old Dean gets to do what he intended after all – have the flesh peeled from his bones as he rots slowly away in the fiery pits of _Hell_!"

Something in Sam's mind just snapped; his emotions had been on such high alert having been strung out for so long, that this taunt about his brother was the straw that broke the camel's back. With his face contorted in fury and anguish, the young hunter lunged at the blonde demon fully intent on pummelling _her_ into the wall.

"Just _shut up_!" Sam's hands reached out to grab hold of her but, before he could touch her, Ruby flew back seemingly of her own accord to slam into the wall. Flames licked at his feet and hands, but he couldn't feel them as they spread to wrap around his body and flickered violently. Some of the sparks caught the sofa and ignited, rapidly creating a roaring blaze that threatened to spiral out of control.

Sam didn't know what it was that brought him back to earth with a bump, causing the flames around him to die out, leaving only the sofa to glow sporadically as it smouldered in the background. Maybe it was the sudden look of utter fear mixed with a strange tint of sorrow in Ruby's eyes; or maybe it was the sudden image of Dean that popped into his head that gazed at him with such disappointment that all else paled in comparison.


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